Adhesive Bus Bar Layout for Hidden Electrochromic Window Wiring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional electrochromic windows suffer from aesthetic issues due to the visibility of bus bars and scribe lines in the viewable area, which reduces the effective viewing area and compromises the visual appeal.
Innovation Solution
The use of adhesive bus bars made from electrically conductive materials, such as carbon-based compounds, that are colored to match the primary sealant or spacer, ensuring they reside under the spacer and are not visible from the outside, thereby blending with the background.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional bus bars are used in electrochromic windows, then electrical conductivity is achieved, but aesthetic appearance deteriorates due to visibility of bus bars and scribe lines
Solution Approach 1:
The bus bar is extracted from the viewable area by positioning it behind the spacer, removing the visual disturbance while maintaining its electrical function. The scribe line is similarly extracted by routing it behind the spacer rather than across the viewable area.
Solution Approach 2:
The bus bar is moved from the two-dimensional plane of the glass surface to a third-dimensional position behind the spacer, creating depth separation that hides the bus bar from view while maintaining electrical connectivity.
2Reliability
If bus bars are placed in the viewable area for electrical connectivity, then electrical conductivity is improved, but viewing area is reduced due to obstruction
Solution Approach 1:
The bus bar is extracted from the viewable area by positioning it behind the spacer, removing the visual disturbance while maintaining its electrical function. The scribe line is similarly extracted by routing it behind the spacer rather than across the viewable area.
3Shape
If adhesive bus bars colored to match sealant are used, then aesthetic appearance is improved by blending with background, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The adhesive bus bar is colored to match the primary sealant, creating visual blending with the background. This color matching eliminates the visual contrast that would otherwise make the bus bar noticeable, achieving aesthetic integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The adhesive bus bar comprises a composite structure with a conductive adhesive material that is colored to match the sealant. This composite approach combines electrical conductivity with aesthetic matching in a single integrated component.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments described include adhesive bus bars for electrochromic or other optical state changing devices. The bus bars are configured to color match and/or provide minimal optical contrast with their surrounding environment in the optical device, provide better adhesion than ink based bus bars, as well as obviate the need to mitigate defects in underlaying layers.